Title: Introduction to Python

Location: US

Company: University of California, Berkeley

About this course:
This course introduces learners to programming and computational thinking as the foundation of computer and data science. Using Python, students explore how abstraction, iteration, and data manipulation allow computers to solve meaningful problems.
By the end of this course, students will be able to write, test, and reason through Python programs that manipulate data, model real-world systems, and express computational logic clearly. This course provides the essential foundation for the next stages in the certificate: "Recursion and Object-Oriented Programming" and "Working with Data Structures," preparing learners to build scalable, data-driven systems.

Through hands-on coding, visualization tools, and guided examples, students will:

Distinguish between computer science and data science as computational disciplines.

Learn the fundamentals of Python syntax, expressions, and conditionals.

Define and use functions with arguments and return values to structure programs.

Apply iteration using while and for loops to process data efficiently.

Work with sequences, lists, tuples, and comprehensions to organize and analyze data.

Explore higher-order functions (map, filter, reduce) and lambda expressions to write more powerful and concise code.

Understand mutability, function scope, and side effects when managing data and variables.

Visualize execution and variable flow using environment diagrams and Python Tutor.

Students are introduced to computer science and data science through Python programming. They learn abstraction, iteration, and higher-order functions to write efficient, readable code and build the foundation for computational problem-solving.

Duration: 7 weeks

Curriculum:
- Distinguish between computer science and data science as computational disciplines.
- Learn the fundamentals of Python syntax, expressions, and conditionals.
- Define and use functions with arguments and return values to structure programs.
- Apply iteration using while and for loops to process data efficiently.
- Work with sequences, lists, tuples, and comprehensions to organize and analyze data.
- Explore higher-order functions (map, filter, reduce) and lambda expressions to write more powerful and concise code.
- Understand mutability, function scope, and side effects when managing data and variables.

- Visualize execution and variable flow using environment diagrams and Python Tutor.